Method and apparatus for managing communication inquiries

ABSTRACT

A system that incorporates teachings of the present disclosure may include, for example, a processor that can determine a standard inquiry message from an inquiry command captured at a first communication device of a first user. The standard inquiry message can have an importance rating based on an urgency of the inquiry command and based on behavior information associated with the first user. The processor can deliver the standard inquiry message and the importance rating to a communications management agent of a second communication device, where an inquiry indicator accompanies the delivery of the standard inquiry message at the second communication device. Other embodiments are disclosed.

FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE

The present disclosure relates generally to communications and morespecifically to managing communication inquiries in a communicationsystem.

BACKGROUND

Users have access to numerous communication devices for accessinginformation and communicating with other users. As communicationtechnology continues to develop, the number of these types of devicesand their compatibility continues to grow.

The selection of a device to be utilized by a user is often determinedby practical considerations, such as which device is closest to theuser. The selection process can also be based on user preferences, suchas a user who prefers to engage in voice communications over textmessages.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIGS. 1-2 depict illustrative embodiments of communication systems thatprovide communication services;

FIG. 3 depicts an illustrative embodiment of a web portal forinteracting with the communication systems of FIGS. 1-2;

FIG. 4 depicts an illustrative embodiment of a communication deviceutilized in the communication systems of FIGS. 1-2;

FIGS. 5-6 depict illustrative embodiments of communication systems thatprovide communication services;

FIGS. 7-10 depict illustrative embodiments of methods operating inportions of the systems described in FIGS. 1-6; and

FIG. 11 is a diagrammatic representation of a machine in the form of acomputer system within which a set of instructions, when executed, maycause the machine to perform any one or more of the methods discussedherein.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The present disclosure describes, among other things, illustrativeembodiments for utilizing communications management agents to manageinquiry messages being exchanged between communication devices ofvarious entities or parties. The agents can be implemented usingcomputer instructions executed by one or more servers in communicationwith communication devices over a network. The inquiry message exchangecan be based on monitored information associated with the entities,including presence and scheduling data, as well as other information,such as biometric data. The communications management agents can receiveinquiry commands from communication devices and can determine, based onvarious criteria associated with the sending communication devices andthe receiving communication devices, suitable standard inquiry messages,levels of importance, and inquiry indicators for the inquiry.

One embodiment of the present disclosure includes a first server of agroup of servers, where the first server includes a memory and acontroller circuit coupled to the memory. The controller circuit canperform a method that includes receiving an inquiry command from a firstcommunication device of a first user. The inquiry command can becaptured by the first communication device and can be directed toobtaining a response from a second user. The controller circuit can alsoobtain behavior information associated with the second user from asecond server of the group of servers that is executing computerinstructions for a communications management agent that is associatedwith the second user. The controller circuit can further analyze contentof the received inquiry command to determine a standard inquiry messageand an urgency level. The controller circuit can determine an importancerating of the inquiry message according to the urgency level and theobtained behavior information. In turn, the controller circuit canprovide the inquiry message and the importance rating to thecommunications management agent of the second user that determines atime and message format for receipt of the inquiry message by a secondcommunication device of the second user based on the importance rating.The controller circuit can also receive the response to the inquirymessage from the communications management agent of the second user.

One embodiment of the present disclosure is a system that includes atleast one server executing computer instructions to enable a firstcommunications management agent associated with a first user andexecuting the computer instructions to enable a second communicationsmanagement agent associated with a second user. The at least one server,when executing the computer instructions, can perform a method thatincludes receiving an inquiry command from a first communication deviceof a first user. The inquiry command can be captured by the firstcommunication device and can be directed to obtaining a response from asecond user. The at least one server can determine a standard inquirymessage and an urgency level according to content of the receivedinquiry command and first behavior information associated with the firstuser. The at least one server can further determine an importance ratingof the inquiry message according to the urgency level and secondbehavior information associated with the second user. In turn, the atleast one server can provide the inquiry message and the importancerating to the communications management agent of the second user thatdetermines a time and message format for receipt of the inquiry messageby a second communication device of the second user based on theimportance rating.

One embodiment of the present disclosure includes a non-transitorycomputer-readable storage medium having computer instructions which whenexecuted by at least one processor can cause the at least one processorto perform a method that includes determining a standard inquiry messagefrom an inquiry command captured at a first communication device from afirst user. The standard inquiry message is associated with animportance rating based on an urgency of the inquiry command and onbehavior information associate with the first user. The computerinstructions can also cause the at least one processor to determine aninquiry indicator according to the first user. The computer instructionscan further cause the at least one processor to deliver the inquirymessage and the importance rating to a communications management agentassociated with a second communication device. The inquiry indicator canaccompany the delivery of the inquiry message at the secondcommunication device.

FIG. 1 depicts an illustrative embodiment of a first communicationsystem 100 for providing communication services that can includedelivering messages and/or content to various communications devices.The communication system 100 can manage the delivery of communications(e.g., via a digital agent(s)) to one or more users based on variouscriteria, including monitored behavior of the sender and/or therecipient, importance ratings of the communications, analysis of thecontent of the communications, and so forth. The system 100 can providefor feedback on the importance ratings in order to improve the accuracyof ratings being generated. The exemplary embodiments herein refer tooutgoing inquiry messages, which can include any type of incomingcommunications, including voice communications, text messages, emailmessages, video conferencing, voice mail messages, social network posts,M2M alerts, calendar requests/management, content generally posted thatmay be of interest to the user, advertisements, and so forth.

The system 100 can provide for generating, adjusting and otherwisemanaging virtual task lists 163 for a group of users. Task requests canbe exchanged between users based on various criteria, includingscheduling data and presence data of the users. The task requests canalso be generated based on prior interaction data representing priortasks that were performed on behalf of other users.

The communication system 100 can represent an Internet ProtocolTelevision (IPTV) media system. The IPTV media system can include asuper head-end office (SHO) 110 with at least one super headend officeserver (SHS) 111 which receives content from satellite and/orterrestrial communication systems. In the present context, content canrepresent in whole or in part, for example, messages, text, audio,moving images such as 2D or 3D videos, video games, virtual realitycontent, still image content, and combinations thereof. The SHS server111 can forward packets associated with the media content to one or morevideo head-end servers (VHS) 114 via a network of video head-end offices(VHO) 112 according to a common multicast communication protocol.

The VHS 114 can distribute multimedia content, including messages and/orbroadcast content, via an access network 118 to commercial and/orresidential buildings 102 housing a gateway 104 (such as a residentialor commercial gateway). The access network 118 can represent a group ofdigital subscriber line access multiplexers (DSLAMs) located in acentral office or a service area interface that provide broadbandservices over fiber optical links or copper twisted pairs 119 tobuildings 102. The gateway 104 can use common communication technologyto distribute broadcast signals to media processors 106 such as Set-TopBoxes (STBs) which in turn present broadcast channels to media devices108 such as computers or television sets managed in some instances by amedia controller 107 (such as an infrared or RF remote control). Otherdata can be distributed to the media processors 106 via the gateway,including voice messages, text messages, voice communications, videoconferencing and combinations thereof. Other techniques and/orcomponents can be utilized for delivering communications, such asdescribed in U.S. application Ser. No. 13/307,473 entitled “Method AndApparatus For Managing Communication Exchanges” filed on Nov. 30, 2011by Tardelli et al., the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated byreference herein in its entirety.

The gateway 104, the media processors 106, and/or media devices 108 canutilize tethered communication technologies (such as coaxial, powerlineor phone line wiring) or can operate over a wireless access protocolsuch as Wireless Fidelity (WiFi), Bluetooth, Zigbee, or other present ornext generation local or personal area wireless network technologies. Byway of these interfaces, unicast communications can also be invokedbetween the media processors 106 and subsystems of the IPTV media systemfor services such as video-on-demand (VoD), browsing an electronicprogramming guide (EPG), or other infrastructure services.

A satellite broadcast television system 129 can also be used in thesystem of FIG. 1. The satellite broadcast television system can beoverlaid, operably coupled with, or replace the IPTV system as anotherrepresentative embodiment of communication system 100. In thisembodiment, signals transmitted by a satellite 115 carrying mediacontent can be received by a satellite dish receiver 131 coupled to thebuilding 102. Modulated signals received by the satellite dish receiver131 can be transferred to the media processors 106 for demodulating,decoding, encoding, and/or distributing broadcast channels to the mediadevices 108. The media processors 106 can be equipped with a broadbandport to the ISP network 132 to enable interactive services such as VoDand EPG as described above.

In yet another embodiment, an analog or digital cable broadcastdistribution system such as cable TV system 133 can be overlaid,operably coupled with, or replace the IPTV system and/or the satelliteTV system as another representative embodiment of communication system100. In this embodiment, the cable TV system 133 can also provideInternet, telephony, and interactive media services.

The embodiments of the present disclosure can apply to otherover-the-air and/or landline media content services system.

Some of the network elements of the IPTV media system can be coupled toone or more computing devices 130, a portion of which can operate as aweb server for providing web portal services over an Internet ServiceProvider (ISP) network 132 to wireline and/or wireless devices,including media devices 108 and/or portable communication devices 116.

Multiple forms of media services can be offered to media devices overlandline technologies in communication system 100 such as through thedevices and/or techniques described above. Additionally, media servicescan be offered to media devices by way of a wireless access base station117 operating according to common wireless access protocols such asGlobal System for Mobile or GSM, Code Division Multiple Access or CDMA,Time Division Multiple Access or TDMA, Universal MobileTelecommunications or UMTS, World interoperability for Microwave orWiMAX, Software Defined Radio or SDR, Long Term Evolution or LTE, and soon. Other present and next generation wide area wireless networktechnologies are contemplated by the present disclosure.

Communication system 100 can also provide for all or a portion of thecomputing devices 130 to function as a communications management server(herein referred to as server 130). The server 130 can use commoncomputing and communication technology to perform function 162, whichcan include among things, implementing a communications management agentfor one or more users of system 100 to manage communications associatedwith the user(s), including incoming communications and outgoingcommunications. The exemplary embodiments can utilize any number ofservers 130 which can implement any number of communications managementagents 162. The agents 162 can be executed for each user individually orcan be shared amongst users, such as amongst a related group (e.g.,family members).

In one or more embodiments, the server 130 can enable differentcommunications management agents 162 to interact with each other as anintermediary in a process for delivering messages, including inquirymessages, between users that are associated with the particular agents.In one or more embodiments, the communications management agents 162 canmonitor behavior or otherwise obtain behavior information for acorresponding user with which the agent is associated. For instance,communication devices can have software for providing behaviorinformation to the agent 162, such as gateway 104, media processors 106,media devices 108 and/or mobile devices 116 having software 164 forproviding information, including presence data, scheduling data and/orbiometric data, to the communications management agent 162.

In one or more embodiments, the communications management agents 162 canactively monitor for devices of the user from which informationassociated with the user can be retrieved. The active monitoring caninclude numerous techniques such as interaction with the user to requestinput as to various devices that the user utilizes. For instance, a usercan identify devices and software applications (e.g., social networks)that the user utilizes, and the communications management agents 162 canthen communicate with those identified devices and software to establisha dataflow. The provisioning of the communications management agent 162with the potential sources of information can be done through use of aprovisioning GUI that can provide questions and input fields for theuser. The provisioning can be done via other methods, includingdetection of devices in proximity to the user (e.g., detecting wirelesssignal) and determining whether the device can be used for obtaininginformation associated with the user.

The active monitoring of the communications management agent 162 canalso include analyzing other information associated with the user todetermine whether new devices or software are being utilized by theuser. For example, electronic billing of a user can be analyzed todetermine that an electronic device or software has recently beenpurchased which may be able to provide behavior information. Theprovisioning process can include determining the potential sources andcommunicating with the potential sources to establish a dataflow so thatthe information or monitored behavior can be received from the variousdevices by the communications management agent 162.

In one or more embodiments, communications management agents 162 enableprocessing of incoming communications (e.g., voice or text messagesand/or voice communications) to determine how the incomingcommunications are to be processed such as according to dynamic handlingrules that are being adjusted based on various information, includingthe monitored behavior information of the recipient and/or the sender.The dynamic handling rules enable the server 130 to manage the deliveryof messages to users based on all or a portion of information availablethat is related to the recipient of the messages and/or the sender ofthe messages. The dynamic handling rules can determine timing ofprocessing messages including processing it immediately, delaying theprocessing such as based on a prioritization determined by thecommunications management agent 162 and so forth. The dynamic handlingrules can enable delegating the processing to another device or systemand/or delaying processing by providing an immediate response thatindicates that the communications management agent 162 will process theinformation for a delivery determination at a later time.

In one or more embodiments, the communications management agents 162 canutilize scheduling data and/or presence data to process the incomingmessages, such as updating a user's calendar automatically with theincoming messages or determining a user is present in a car andadjusting a navigation system of the car based on incoming messages. Inone or more embodiments, the messages can be analyzed, including viaparsing engines and/or natural language engines, to determine a subjectmatter of the messages and/or summarize the messages. In one or moreembodiments, the communications management agents 162 can analyze theincoming messages and respond to the sender prior to delivering theincoming messages to the recipient, such as sending a response thatrequests additional information from the sender based on a determinationthat the recipient will need more information to make a decisionassociated with the incoming message.

The monitored behavior or other information associated with therecipient and/or the user for making determinations as to processing ofthe incoming messages can vary and can be obtained in a number ofdifferent ways, including in real-time or in an offline process. Forexample, the communications management agents 162 can obtain biometricdata associated with the recipient and/or sender. For instance, thebiometric data can be data associated with heart rate, blood pressure,respiratory rate and so forth. This biometric data can be used in anumber of different ways by the communications management agents 162,such as determining whether a user is engaged in a vigorous activitywhich may render them less likely to desire to receive an incomingmessage. On the other hand, similar information can be indicative of theuser feeling concerned or anxious about an event which may render themmore likely to desire to receive an incoming message. The biometric datacan be used alone or with other information (e.g., scheduling and/orpresence data) to estimate or predict an activity that the user may beengaged in which can then be used as part of the determination as todelivering an incoming message to the user. The biometric data can beobtained from a variety of sources, including wirelessly from sensorsconnected to or otherwise in communication with the user. As an example,the user may be exercising utilizing a wireless heart rate monitor.Wireless signals from the heart rate monitor can be monitored by acommunication device of the user, such as a mobile phone, andtransmitted to the communications management agent 162.

The monitored information can be associated with time and/or locationdata of the user, including scheduling data and/or presence data. Forexample, the communication management data 162 can actively monitor acalendar of the user for scheduling data and can actively monitorelectronic billing information of the user to detect purchases that areindicative of time or location commitments of the user. For instance, acredit card bill may indicate that the user has purchased tickets to afootball game in Kansas City. The communications management agent 162can determine the time of the football game and estimate that the userwill need to travel to Kansas City during a particular time frame. Theparticular time frame for travel can be further estimated based on othertime and/or location commitments for the user, such as based on acalendar notice that the user has a meeting in Chicago on the day beforethe football game. The communications management agents 162 can alsointeract with the user to verify or otherwise determine the estimatedtime frame for travel. In one embodiment, the communications managementagent 162 can determine an estimated time frame for travel prior torequesting a verification of the travel schedule from the user. Byknowing that the user is travelling during a particular time period, thecommunications management agent 162 can apply handling rules so thatincoming messages are processed as desired by the user during travel,such as a user who desires only to receive emails when travelling or auser that desires only to receive voice mail messages limited to family.

The monitored information can be associated with a measure of the valueof the relationship between the sender and the recipient. This measurecan be an adjustable or otherwise changing measurement, such as based onincreased positive interaction between the user and sender which resultsin an increase in the value or an increased negative interaction betweenthe user and sender which results in a decrease in the value. Thecommunications management agent 162 can determine the increase inpositive interaction or determine the increase in negative interactionin a number of different ways, including monitoring the number ofcommunications between the parties, analyzing the content ofcommunications between parties to determine if the communications arepositive or negative (e.g., determining a subject matter for a messagethat is indicative of a problem arising between the parties),determining social interaction between the parties such as detectingthat the parties attended a baseball game together, determining anavoidance by one of the parties towards the other such as fromcancelling social interaction events between the parties, and so forth.In one or more embodiments, the relationship value can be adjusted bythe user. For instance, the communications management agent 162 candetermine a relationship value based on information such as socialinteraction, number of communications between the parties and content ofcommunications. The relationship value can then be presented to the userto verify or otherwise adjust the value.

In one or more embodiments, the relationship value can be a confidentialvalue that is known by the communications management agent 162 and theuser, but is not shared with the other user. In other embodiments, therelationship value can be shared with the other users and theircorresponding communications management agents, including sharingchanges in the relationship values as they occur so that a deteriorationof or an improvement of a relationship between users can be indicated.The relationship value can also be determined based on other factors,such as whether the other user is a family or friend, or whether theother user is a work colleague.

The determination of processing of the messages can be based on otherfactors, including a mindshare associated with the user that isindicative of a preferred time to talk to the user, the sender's socialconnectivity, a balance sheet with the sender (e.g., the sender has anobligation to me), sender assigned metadata, reputation of the sender,determined nature of the content (e.g., humorous, urgent, etc.), size ofcontent, a content novelty index, supplementary sender-based agentinformation (e.g., subject matter or urgency), and/or the message spokenexplicitly by the sender.

The monitored information can be utilized in combination with thevirtual task list 163 of the user which is maintained by the server 130and/or the communications management agent 162. The virtual task list163 can be a list of tasks that need to be performed and which areassociated with the particular user. The virtual task list 163 can beadjusted based on the monitored information and/or incomingcommunications. For instance, the communications management agent 162can analyze incoming communications to determine if the communicationsrequest or require the recipient to perform a task. In one or moreembodiments, the task can be any type of task, including buying milk onthe way home from work or picking up a family member before going towork.

The virtual task list 163 can be adjusted based on the ability of theuser to perform the task. For example, if the communications managementagent 162 receives a message from the user's family requesting that theuser buy milk on the way home from work but the communicationsmanagement agent 162 determines that the user is working overtime pastthe store closing time then the user can be deemed unavailable forperforming the task. The communications management agent 162 can utilizethe monitored behavior information to determine that the user isscheduled to work overtime, such as an analysis of the content of amessage from the user's supervisor requesting the overtime work and/ordetermining that the user has accepted the request (e.g., via an emailor voice mail message provided by the user to the supervisor). In one ormore embodiments, the communications management agent 162 can send anotice to the user to remind the user that he is unable to perform thetask and/or can send a message to the user's family (e.g., via anothercommunications management agent associated with the family) advising thefamily of the user's unavailability to perform the task. As describedabove, the various monitored information of the user can be utilized indetermining whether a task should be added to the virtual task list 163of the user, including scheduling data, presence data, relationshipvalue associated with the other user requesting the task, and so forth.

In one or more embodiments, the communications management agent 162 candetermine a time, a message format and at least one first communicationdevice for delivering a message and/or a summary of the message to theuser based on the monitored behavior information and/or an analysis ofthe content of the message. The communications management agent 162 canthen adjust the virtual task list 163 for the user based on the analysisof the content. Other behavior information associated with another usercan then be obtained, such as presence data, scheduling data and/orprior interaction data (e.g., information associated with tasks from avirtual task list 163 of the other user that were performed by theuser). In this example, a task message can be sent to the communicationsmanagement agent 162 of the other user according to the obtained otherbehavior information. The task message can request performance by theother user of the task from the user's virtual task list 163. In thisway, users can perform tasks for one another that are established andcoordinated between the communications management agents 162 and wherethe coordination of the tasks can be based on a history of each partyperforming the tasks so that a balance of task performance betweenparties can be achieved and maintained.

In one or more embodiments, the assignment of a task can requireverification by one or both of the requestor and the party assigned thetask. In other embodiments, the communications management agent 162 canrefuse to accept a request for a task assignment from anothercommunications management agent (e.g., because of an imbalance in thenumber of tasks that have been performed by the requestor upon behalf ofthe potential assignee). In this example, the communications managementagent 162 that refuses the task assignment can respond by advising ofthe imbalance in the distribution of tasks, can respond with no reasonfor the refusal to accept the task and/or can respond with analternative reason for refusal to accept the task. In one or moreembodiments, the communications management agent 162 can monitor for theperformance of the task by the other user and can adjust the priorinteraction data according to a completion of the task. The monitoringof the completion of the task can be based on various types ofinformation, including information obtained from other sources that areassociated with the task. For instance, presence data can be obtainedfor a first co-worker where the task of taking the first co-worker towork was assigned from the user's virtual task list 163 to a secondco-worker.

In one or more embodiments, the virtual task list 163 can be co-managedbetween the user and the communications management agent 162 and/orbetween two or more communications management agents for associatedusers (e.g., a family virtual task list that is co-managed bycommunications management agents 162 that correspond to the members ofthe family). In this example, the co-management can be subject toconflict rules, such as prioritization of tasks originated by theparents over tasks originated by the child or prioritization based on asubject matter of the task (e.g., a task to pick up the child fromschool is a higher priority than a task to buy milk from the store).

In one or more embodiments, the virtual task list 163 can be utilized inthe determination of processing incoming messages. For instance, alength of a virtual task list 163 or the importance of tasks on thevirtual task list may be indicative of a desire by the user not toimmediately receive messages (e.g., no voice calls) other than highpriority messages from family or friends. In one or more embodiments,the communications management agent 162 can analyze the content of thetasks and determine incoming messages that are necessary or helpful tocompleting one or more of the tasks in order to determine whether theincoming messages should be immediately delivered to the user, such asvia a voice call or text message, or should be stored for later accessby the user, such as via a voice mail message or an email message. Inone or more embodiments, the expected time to do a task from the virtualtask list as compared to the actual time can be considered in thedetermination of processing incoming images.

In one or more embodiments, the communications management agents canprovide a platform for exchanging monitored information of the users ora portion thereof. The exchange of such information can be a limited ornegotiated process, such as a first user agreeing to provide onlypresence data in exchange for the presence data of a second user. Inother embodiments, the exchange can be unlimited, such as including allinformation for both the first and second users in the informationexchange. The information exchange can be a one-time event or recurringevent each time a message is to be delivered between the parties or theinformation exchange can be a continuous event, such as periodicallyexchanging all or selected portions of the monitored informationaccording to a pre-determined schedule. The negotiation can be performedbetween the communications management agents 162 and/or between theusers.

In one or more embodiments, portions of the monitored information can befiltered by the communications management agent 162 based on quality.For instance, presence data can be compared by the communicationsmanagement agent 162 to scheduling data to detect conflicts, and otherinformation can be obtained or otherwise analyzed to determine theaccuracy of the data, such as analyzing content data from messages orthe communications management agent requesting verification from theuser.

In one or more embodiments, filtering of the monitored behaviorinformation can be performed by any number of devices, including devicesother than server 130 such as the portable communication devices, anSTB, and so forth. The filtering can be performed based on varioustechniques, including comparison of similar data received from differentsources (e.g., presence data from two different devices indicating aconflict in presence), statistical and/or historical analysis of themonitored behavior information to determine accuracy, and so forth.

In one embodiment, the software functions 164 can be executed in onecommunication device 116 retrieving monitored information from anothercommunication device, and providing the monitored information to thecommunications management agent 162 of the server 130. In this example,the communications management agent 130 does not need to be directlyreceiving the monitored information from each of the devices associatedwith the user, but rather can be in communication with a first portionof devices associated with a user that are themselves in communicationwith a second portion of devices associated with a user. In this manner,the efficiency of the dataflow between the devices associated with theuser and the communications management agent 162 can be improved.

In one or more embodiments, the communications management agents 162 canenable processing of incoming communications (e.g., voice or textmessages and/or voice communications) in the form of inquiry commandsfrom one communication device, such as a mobile device 116 or a mediaprocessor device 106, to another communication device. The inquirycommands can be brief communication requests where a first user at afirst communication device requests for a response from a second user ata second communication device. The inquiry commands can be “whisper”messages that are intended to communicate to the second user in a mannerthat is inconspicuous to others and that will tend to elicit animmediate response, if possible.

In one or more embodiments, the sending user can initiate an inquirycommand at a communication device 116. For example, the sending user canenter a text command, “Herman, can you call me,” into the communicationdevice. The communication device can capture and interpret this textentry as an inquiry command event, whereby the user desires to contactHerman, electronically, and ask Herman to call the user. In thisexample, Herman is a receiving user that the sending user has explicitlyspecified to receive the inquiry. The communication device 116 cantransmit an inquiry command to a server 130 hosting the communicationsmanagement agent 162.

In one or more embodiments, the communications management agent 162 cananalyze a received inquiry command to determine how it is to beprocessed. The communications management agent 162 can apply static ordynamic handling rules, or combinations thereof. For example, dynamichandling rules can be adjusted based on various pieces of information,including monitored behavior information of the sender user or thereceiving user. The dynamic handling rules enable the server 130 tomanage the delivery of the inquiry message to the receiving user basedon all or a portion of information available that is related to thereceiving user of the message and/or the sending user of the message.The dynamic handling rules can determine timing of processing messagesincluding processing it immediately, delaying the processing such asbased on a prioritization determined by the communications managementagent 162 and so forth. The dynamic handling rules can enable delegatingthe processing to another device or system and/or delaying processing byproviding an immediate response that indicates that the communicationsmanagement agent 162 will process the information for a deliverydetermination at a later time.

In one or more embodiments, the communications management agents 162 canutilize scheduling data and/or presence data to process the inquirycommand, such as determining a user is present in a car and adjusting anavigation system of the car based on incoming messages. In one or moreembodiments, the inquiry command can be analyzed, including via parsingengines and/or natural language engines, to determine a receiving userand/or a subject matter and/or to determine a standard inquiry messagethat can be substituted for the inquiry command. In one or moreembodiments, the communications management agents 162 can also analyzethe inquiry command and determine an importance rating for the inquirycommand. The importance rating can be included with the inquiry command,or with a substituted standard inquiry message, to provide priorityinformation to the receiving user, or to communications management agent162 associated with the receiving user and acting on behalf of thereceiving user.

In one or more embodiments, the communications management agent 162associated with the sending user can obtain and user monitored behavioror other information associated to make determinations as to processingof the inquiry command or any standard inquiry messages derivedtherefrom. The monitoring information can be varied and can be obtainedin a number of different ways, including in real-time or in an offlineprocess. For example, the communications management agents 162 canobtain biometric data associated with the receiving and/or sendingusers. For instance, the biometric data can be data associated withheart rate, blood pressure, respiratory rate and so forth. Thisbiometric data can be used in a number of different ways by thecommunications management agents 162, such as determining whether areceiving user is engaged in a vigorous activity which may render themless likely to desire to receive an incoming message. Conversely,biometric-based monitoring information can be indicative of thereceiving user feeling concerned or anxious about an event which mayrender them more likely to desire to receive an incoming message.Similarly, biometric data can be used to determine if a sending userlikely intends an inquiry command to be urgent or to be lax. Thebiometric data can be used alone or with other information (e.g.,scheduling and/or presence data) to estimate or predict an activity thatthe user may be engaged in which can then be used as part of thedetermination as to delivering an inquiry command to the user. Thebiometric data can be obtained from a variety of sources, includingwirelessly from sensors connected to or otherwise in communication withthe user. As an example, the user may be exercising utilizing a wirelessheart rate monitor. Wireless signals from the heart rate monitor can bemonitored by a communication device of the user, such as a mobile phone,and transmitted to the communications management agent 162.

FIG. 2 depicts an illustrative embodiment of a communication system 200employing IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) network architecture tofacilitate the combined services of circuit-switched and packet-switchedsystems. Communication system 200 can be overlaid or operably coupledwith communication system 100 as another representative embodiment ofcommunication system 100.

The communication system 200 can provide for the gathering by thecommunications management agents 162 of the monitored informationassociated with each of the users and the determination of theprocessing of incoming messages, included inquiry commands, based on themonitored information. Communication system 200 enables exchange of themonitored information and/or the incoming messages via packet-switchedand/or circuit-switched communication technologies.

Communication system 200 can comprise a Home Subscriber Server (HSS)240, a tElephone NUmber Mapping (ENUM) server 230, and other commonnetwork elements of an IMS network 250. The IMS network 250 canestablish communications between IMS-compliant communication devices(CDs) 201, 202, Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) CDs 203, 205,and combinations thereof by way of a Media Gateway Control Function(MGCF) 220 coupled to a PSTN network 260. The MGCF 220 need not be usedwhen a communication session involves IMS CD to IMS CD communications. Acommunication session involving at least one PSTN CD may utilize theMGCF 220.

IMS CDs 201, 202 can register with the IMS network 250 by contacting aProxy Call Session Control Function (P-CSCF) which communicates with aninterrogating CSCF (I-CSCF), which in turn, communicates with a ServingCSCF (S-CSCF) to register the CDs with the HSS 240. To initiate acommunication session between CDs, an originating IMS CD 201 can submita Session Initiation Protocol (SIP INVITE) message to an originatingP-CSCF 204 which communicates with a corresponding originating S-CSCF206. The originating S-CSCF 206 can submit the SIP INVITE message to oneor more application servers (ASs) 217 that can provide a variety ofservices to IMS subscribers.

For example, the application servers 217 can be used to performoriginating call feature treatment functions on the calling party numberreceived by the originating S-CSCF 206 in the SIP INVITE message.Originating treatment functions can include determining whether thecalling party number has international calling services, call IDblocking, calling name blocking, 7-digit dialing, and/or is requestingspecial telephony features (e.g., *72 forward calls, *73 cancel callforwarding, *67 for caller ID blocking, and so on). Based on initialfilter criteria (iFCs) in a subscriber profile associated with a CD, oneor more application servers may be invoked to provide various calloriginating feature services.

Additionally, the originating S-CSCF 206 can submit queries to the ENUMsystem 230 to translate an E.164 telephone number in the SIP INVITEmessage to a SIP Uniform Resource Identifier (URI) if the terminatingcommunication device is IMS-compliant. The SIP URI can be used by anInterrogating CSCF (I-CSCF) 207 to submit a query to the HSS 240 toidentify a terminating S-CSCF 214 associated with a terminating IMS CDsuch as reference 202. Once identified, the I-CSCF 207 can submit theSIP INVITE message to the terminating S-CSCF 214. The terminating S-CSCF214 can then identify a terminating P-CSCF 216 associated with theterminating CD 202. The P-CSCF 216 may then signal the CD 202 toestablish Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) communication services,thereby enabling the calling and called parties to engage in voiceand/or data communications. Based on the iFCs in the subscriber profile,one or more application servers may be invoked to provide various callterminating feature services, such as call forwarding, do not disturb,music tones, simultaneous ringing, sequential ringing, etc.

In some instances the aforementioned communication process issymmetrical. Accordingly, the terms “originating” and “terminating” inFIG. 2 may be interchangeable. It is further noted that communicationsystem 200 can be adapted to support video conferencing. In addition,communication system 200 can be adapted to provide the IMS CDs 201, 202with the multimedia and Internet services of communication system 100 ofFIG. 1, including the monitored information gathered from variousdevices associated with the user. It is further contemplated that theCDs of FIG. 2 can operate as wireline and/or wireless devices. Forexample, the CDs of FIG. 2 can be communicatively coupled to a cellularbase station 117 such as shown in FIG. 1, a femtocell (not shown), aWiFi router, a DECT base unit, or another suitable wireless access unitto establish communications with the IMS network 250 of FIG. 2.

If the terminating communication device is instead a PSTN CD such as CD203 or CD 205 (in instances where the cellular phone only supportscircuit-switched voice communications), the ENUM system 230 can respondwith an unsuccessful address resolution which can cause the originatingS-CSCF 206 to forward the call to the MGCF 220 via a Breakout GatewayControl Function (BGCF) 219. The MGCF 220 can then initiate the call tothe terminating PSTN CD over the PSTN network 260 to enable the callingand called parties to engage in voice and/or data communications.

It is further appreciated that the CDs of FIG. 2 can operate as wirelineor wireless devices. Although not shown, the CDs of FIG. 2 can becommunicatively coupled to a cellular base station 221, a femtocell, aWiFi router, a DECT base unit, or another suitable wireless access unitto establish communications with the IMS network 250 of FIG. 2. Thecellular access base station 121 can operate according to commonwireless access protocols such as Global System for Mobile (GSM), CodeDivision Multiple Access (CDMA), Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA),Universal Mobile Telecommunications (UMTS), World interoperability forMicrowave (WiMAX), Software Defined Radio (SDR), Long Term Evolution(LTE), and so on. Other wireless network technologies can be utilized bythe present disclosure. Accordingly, multiple wireline and wirelesscommunication technologies are usable with the CDs of FIG. 2.

It is further contemplated that cellular phones supporting LTE cansupport packet-switched voice and packet-switched data communicationsand thus may operate as IMS-compliant mobile devices. In thisembodiment, the cellular base station 221 may communicate directly withthe IMS network 250.

Communication system 200 can include or otherwise be coupled with server130 of FIG. 1 for purposes similar to those described above. It isfurther contemplated by the present disclosure that the communicationsmanagement agents 162 can communicate with one or more components ofsystem 200, including the HSS 240 and the S-CSCF 206, for gathering atleast a portion of the monitored behavior information (e.g., presencedata). It is further contemplated that the server 130 can be an integralpart of the application server(s) 217.

FIG. 3 depicts an illustrative embodiment of a web portal 302 which canbe hosted by server applications operating from the computing devices130 of the communication system 100 illustrated in FIG. 1. The webportal 302 can be used for managing services of communication systems100-200. A web page of the web portal 302 can be accessed by a UniformResource Locator (URL) with an Internet browser such as Microsoft'sInternet Explorer™, Mozilla's Firefox™, Apple's Safari™, or Google'sChrome™ using an Internet-capable communication device such as thosedescribed in FIGS. 1-2. The web portal 302 can be configured, forexample, to access a media processor 106 and services managed therebysuch as a Digital Video Recorder (DVR), a Video on Demand (VoD) catalog,an Electronic Programming Guide (EPG), or a personal catalog (such aspersonal videos, pictures, audio recordings, etc.) stored at the mediaprocessor 106. The web portal 302 can also be used for provisioning thecommunications management agents 162 with devices, software and othersources that can be monitored for obtaining the monitored informationupon which the dynamic message handling rules are maintained andrevised. The web portal 302 can also be used for provisioning IMSservices described earlier, provisioning Internet services, provisioningcellular phone services, and so on.

It is contemplated by the present disclosure that the web portal 302 canfurther be utilized to manage and provision software applications162-164 of the devices of FIGS. 1-2, respectively, as described earlier.In one or more embodiments, the web portal 302 can be used forinteraction between a user and the user's communications managementagent 162. For instance, a user can adjust a virtual task list, set userpreferences to be utilized in combination with the dynamic messagehandling rules, update a relationship value, or provide user feedback onan accuracy rating provided by another communications management agentvia the web portal 302.

FIG. 4 depicts an exemplary embodiment of a communication device 400.Communication device 400 can serve in whole or in part as anillustrative embodiment of the devices depicted in FIGS. 1-2. Thecommunication device 400 can comprise a wireline and/or wirelesstransceiver 402 (herein transceiver 402), a user interface (UI) 404, apower supply 414, a location receiver 416, and a controller 406 formanaging operations thereof. The transceiver 402 can support short-rangeor long-range wireless access technologies such as Bluetooth, WiFi,Digital Enhanced Cordless Telecommunications (DECT), or cellularcommunication technologies, just to mention a few. Cellular technologiescan include, for example, CDMA-1X, UMTS/HSDPA, GSM/GPRS, TDMA/EDGE,EV/DO, WiMAX, SDR, LTE, as well as other next generation wirelesscommunication technologies as they arise. The transceiver 402 can alsobe adapted to support circuit-switched wireline access technologies(such as PSTN), packet-switched wireline access technologies (such asTCPIP, VoIP, etc.), and combinations thereof.

The UI 404 can include a depressible or touch-sensitive keypad 408 witha navigation mechanism such as a roller ball, a joystick, a mouse, or anavigation disk for manipulating operations of the communication device400. The keypad 408 can be an integral part of a housing assembly of thecommunication device 400 or an independent device operably coupledthereto by a tethered wireline interface (such as a USB cable) or awireless interface supporting for example Bluetooth. The keypad 408 canrepresent a numeric keypad commonly used by phones, and/or a Qwertykeypad with alphanumeric keys. The UI 404 can further include a display410 such as monochrome or color LCD (Liquid Crystal Display), OLED(Organic Light Emitting Diode) or other suitable display technology forconveying images to an end user of the communication device 400. In anembodiment where the display 410 is touch-sensitive, a portion or all ofthe keypad 408 can be presented by way of the display 410 withnavigation features.

The UI 404 can also include an audio system 412 that utilizes commonaudio technology for conveying low volume audio (such as audio heardonly in the proximity of a human ear) and high volume audio (such asspeakerphone for hands free operation). The audio system 412 can furtherinclude a microphone for receiving audible signals of an end user. Theaudio system 412 can also be used for voice recognition applications.The UI 404 can further include an image sensor 413 such as a chargedcoupled device (CCD) camera for capturing still or moving images.

The power supply 414 can utilize common power management technologiessuch as replaceable and rechargeable batteries, supply regulationtechnologies, and charging system technologies for supplying energy tothe components of the communication device 400 to facilitate long-rangeor short-range portable applications. The location receiver 416 canutilize common location technology such as a global positioning system(GPS) receiver capable of assisted GPS for identifying a location of thecommunication device 400 based on signals generated by a constellationof GPS satellites, thereby facilitating common location services such asnavigation.

The communication device 400 can use the transceiver 402 to alsodetermine a proximity to a cellular, WiFi, Bluetooth, or other wirelessaccess points by common sensing techniques such as utilizing a receivedsignal strength indicator (RSSI) and/or a signal time of arrival (TOA)or time of flight (TOF). The controller 406 can utilize computingtechnologies such as a microprocessor, a digital signal processor (DSP),and/or a video processor with associated storage memory such as Flash,ROM, RAM, SRAM, DRAM or other storage technologies.

In one or more embodiments, the communication device 400 is adapted todetect and/or communicate with a sensor device 475 which generates userdata, such as biometric data of a user. The communication between device400 and device 475 can utilize wired and/or wireless communication.

The communication device 400 can be adapted to perform the functions162-164 of the server 130, media processor 106, the media devices 108,and/or the portable communication devices 116 of FIG. 1, as well as theIMS CDs 201-202 and/or PSTN CDs 203-205 of FIG. 2. It will beappreciated that the communication device 400 can also represent othercommon devices that can operate in communication systems 100-200 ofFIGS. 1-2 such as a gaming console and a media player.

In one or more embodiments, the communication device 400 can obtain andstore monitored information from other communication devices associatedwith the user. The stored monitored information, as well as monitoredinformation generated by the device 400 can then be provided to thecommunications management agent 162 for the user associated with thedevice 400.

In one or more embodiments, the communication device 400 can captureinquiry command events that can be initiated by a user of thecommunication device 400 in any of several ways. In one embodiment, thecommunication device 400 can receive entry of an inquiry command eventat a user interface, such as a keypad 408, keyboard, or touch screen.For example, a user can key in a text message, such as “Herman, can youcall me.” For example, the user can select an element from a graphicaluser interface where the element is defined in the communication device400 as a means for contacting someone. The graphical user interface canhave a specific element labeled, “Contact Herman.” In one or moreembodiments, the communication device 400 capture audio inputs, such asvoice commands, intended as inquiry command events. To illustrate fromthe previous example, the user could say, “Please have Herman call me.”A microphone at or communicatively coupled to the communication device400 can capture the voice command for processing at the audio system412.

In one or embodiments, the communication device 400 can capture gesturesof a user, where the gestures are intended as a complete or partialinquiry command event. For example, an image sensor 413 at or coupled tothe communication device 400 can capture video images of the user forprocessing and storage in the communication device 400. To continue theillustrative example, the user can pantomime a “call me” sign whilesaying the name, “Herman.” The communication device 400 can capture thecombination of video image and audio speech as an inquiry command event,“Have Herman call me” or “Herman, please call me.”

In one or more embodiments, the communication device 400 can detect andinterpret a user touch of a user interface device as an inquiry commandevent. For example, the user can be wearing headset device that iscommunicatively coupled to the communication device 400 by way of aBluetooth link supported, for example, by a transceiver 402 on thecommunication device 400. A touch by the user of the headset, or aparticular area of the headset, can cause a signal to be transmitted tothe communication device 400. The communication device 400 can definethis signal as a user-initiation of an inquiry command event. In oneembodiment, the received “headset touch” signal can cause thecommunication device to capture all audio data for the subsequent fiveseconds as an intended inquiry command. For example, the user can touchthe Bluetooth headset and then say, “Ask Herman to call me.” Thecommunication device can use the headset touch as a trigger to capturethe inquiry voice command event.

In one or more embodiments, the communication device 400 can monitor andcapture various user acts—inputs, sounds, and/or gestures—and interpretthese as inquiry command events. Where a captured user action indicatesan inquiry command event, the communication device 400 can flag thisinquiry command event. In one or more embodiments, two or more types ofuser acts can be combined to derive a single inquiry command event. Forexample, the communication device 400 can be configured to monitor for aparticular word or phrase defined as a “triggering” word for the inquirycommand event. For example, the communication device 400 can beconfigured to detect a user statement of the phrase, “open contact” as atriggering word. Any time the phrase “open contact” is detected, thecommunication device can automatically interpret any subsequentlyprovided words, phrases, or selections as part of a single inquirycommand event. The communication device 400 can be configured to capturethe subsequently provided words, phrases, or selections for a set periodof time and/or until a subsequent closing word or phrase or action isreceived. For example, the phrase, “close contact” could be used to endcapture of the inquiry command event. In another example, a user gestureof touching a device (e.g., the headset) could be used as a trigger tobegin and/or end capture of an inquiry command event. In one or moreembodiments, the communication device 400 can capture audio data, suchas the spoken request, “Have Herman call me,” and can perform avoice-to-text conversion on the audio data. The exemplary embodimentsfurther contemplate combinations of these input events, such as agesture with a voice command.

Illustrative embodiments of methods that can operate in portions of thecommunication device of FIG. 4 are described below.

FIG. 5 depicts an illustrative embodiment of a system 500 for managingthe delivery of incoming messages, including inquiry commands. System500 can be overlaid or operably coupled to communication systems 100-200as another representative embodiment of communication systems 100-200.

In this exemplary embodiment, a user 501 has various communicationdevices including media processor 506, media device 508 and portabledevice 516. The user 501 has a communications management agent 162implemented on a server 530 within network 518 that obtains monitoredbehavior information 525 associated with the user 501. The monitoredbehavior information can be various forms of data, such as the datadescribed with respect to system 100 of FIG. 1, and can include presencedata, scheduling data, biometric data, communications history data,relationship value data with respect to other users, length and urgencyof presently pending virtual task lists, and so forth. Thecommunications management agent 162 also maintains a virtual task list163 that is associated with the user 501. System 500 also includes auser 502 having various communication devices including media processor506′, media device 508′ and portable device 516′. The user 502 has acommunications management agent 162′ implemented on a server 530′ withinnetwork 518 that obtains monitored behavior information 525′ associatedwith the user 502. The communications management agent 162′ alsomaintains a virtual task list 163′ that is associated with the user 502.It should be understood by one of ordinary skill in the art that anynumber of users, servers, communications managements agents, mediaprocessors, media devices and/or portable devices can be utilized, whichcan be in other configurations, including sharing of servers and/orsharing of communications management agents. It should be furtherunderstood that other types of devices can be utilized in system 500,including other devices associated with the users 501, 502 for obtainingmonitored behavior information and/or for delivering incoming messages,including inquiry commands, as well as other types of network elementsfor facilitating communications between the various devices and throughthe network 518, including routers, switches, DSLAMs, and so forth.

In this exemplary embodiment, a message 550A can be originated by theuser 502, such as at a portable communication device 516′ or othercommunication device, where the message is directed to user 501. Themessage 550A can be of various formats as previously described herein,including but not limited to voice communications, emails, textmessages, video message and so forth. The message 550A can also be anindirect communication such as a posting on a website that is directlyintended for user 501 (e.g., posting on a social network page of theuser 501 or posting on a website with information indicative of theposting being directed to user 501). In one embodiment, the message 550Acan be a posting on a website that is indirectly intended for the user501, such as posting information that would be of interest to the user501, where the communications management agent 162′ and/or thecommunications management agent 162 monitors for such postings (e.g.,based on the posters, the website and/or the content posted) anddetermines whether the posting or a message representative of theposting should be delivered or otherwise directed to the user 501.

In one or more embodiments, the message 550A can be originated without adesignation of a recipient communication device and/or without adesignation of a message format. For instance, the user 502 can input avoice recording into the portable device 516′ and identificationinformation associated with the user 501 can be utilized by thecommunications management agent 162′ for selecting a recipientcommunication device of the user 501 and/or a format for the message. Inone or more embodiments, the message 550A without a designation of therecipient communication device and/or without the designation of themessage format can be provided from the communications management agent162′ to the communications management agent 162 for the communicationsmanagement agent 162 (i.e., the agent for the recipient user 501) todetermine the recipient communication device and/or the message format.The identification information can be directly provided by the user 502such as a voice input of the name of user 501 in response to a promptfor the intended recipient, or can be indirectly provided by the user502 such as determined by the communications management agent 162′ froman analysis of the content of the message.

In one or more embodiments, the sender's communications management agent162′ can designate a recipient communication device and/or designate amessage format, which may or may not be the recipient device and/ormessage format that are utilized in the delivery of the message 550A tothe user 502. For example, the designation of the recipient deviceand/or message format can be a suggestion. In another example, one orboth of the designation of the recipient device and the message formatcan be contingent designations where the user 502 intends on the message550A being delivered only if the designated recipient device and/or themessage format are utilized in the delivery.

In one or more embodiments, the message 550A provided by thecommunications management agent 162′ to the communications managementagent 162 can be representative of the originated communication from theuser 502. For example, the user 502 can input a voice recording intoportable device 516′ that is intended for delivery to user 501. Thecommunications management agent can generate a message which isrepresentative of the voice recording. In one or more embodiments, therepresentative message can be a summary of the voice recording, such asbased on a content analysis of the voice recording performed by thecommunications management agent 162′ using voice recognition, naturallanguage engines and/or parsing engines. In one or more embodiments, therepresentative message can be an enhanced version of the recording whichincludes all of the content of the voice recording and includesadditional information generated by the communications management agent162′, such as subject matter headings, links to content referenced inthe voice recording, identification information for individualsreferenced in the voice recordings, and so forth. The additionalinformation can be generated by the communications management agent 162′using various techniques, including analysis of the content of the voicerecording (e.g., using voice recognition, natural language enginesand/or parsing engines), analysis of other communications that aredetermined to be associated with the voice recording, and/or adetermination (e.g., by the communications management agent 162′) ofexpectations of the user 501 as to information that should be includedin the message. For instance, the communications management agent 162′can determine based on previous communications exchanged between theusers 501, 502 via the communications agents 162, 162′, that the user501 desires messages to include email addresses for any individualidentified in a message. This determination can be made by thecommunications management agent 162′ based on a history of messageexchanges in which the communications management agent 162 requestedsuch information. It should be further understood that while the exampledescribes use of a voice recording, the messages can be originated invarious forms, including text, video and so forth.

In one or more embodiments, the message 550A can be an inquiry commandoriginated by the user 502 as an inquiry command event 580′ captured ata communications device, such as a portable communication device 516′,media display device 508′, or a media processor device 506′. The inquirycommand 550A can be of various formats as previously described herein,including but not limited to voice communications, emails, textmessages, video message and so forth. In one or more embodiments, theinquiry command 550A can be originated without a designation of arecipient communication device and/or without a designation of a messageformat for the command 550A. For instance, the user 502 can input avoice recording into the portable device 516′ and identificationinformation associated with a user 501 can be utilized by thecommunications management agent 162′ for selecting a communicationdevice of an identified receiving user 501 and/or a format for thecommand.

In one or more embodiments, the inquiry command 550A without adesignation of the receiving user's communication device and/or withoutthe designation of the message format can be provided from thecommunications management agent 162′ to the communications managementagent 162 for the communications management agent 162 (i.e., the agentfor the intended, but unnamed, receiving user 501) to determine thereceiving user's communication device and/or the message format of thecommand 550A. The identification information can be directly provided bythe user 502 such as a voice input of the name of receiving user 501 inresponse to a prompt for the intended recipient, or can be indirectlyprovided by the user 502 such as determined by the communicationsmanagement agent 162′ from an analysis of the content of the command.

In one or more embodiments, the sender's communications management agent162′ can designate a recipient communication device and/or designate amessage format for the inquiry command 550A, which may or may not be therecipient device and/or message format that can be utilized in thedelivery of the message 550A to the user 501. For example, thedesignation of the recipient device and/or message format can be asuggestion. In another example, one or both of the designation of therecipient device and the message format can be contingent designationswhere the user 502 intends on the inquiry command 550A being deliveredonly if the designated recipient device and/or the message format areutilized in the delivery.

In one or more embodiments, the inquiry command 550A provided by thecommunications management agent 162′ to the communications managementagent 162 can be representative of the originated communication from theuser 502. For example, the user 502 can input a voice message intoportable device 516′ that is intended for delivery to user 501. In oneor more embodiments, the communications management agent 162′ canreplaced the inquiry command 550A with a standard inquiry message 550Bthat can be sent to a communications management agent 162 for thereceiving user 501. The standard inquiry message 550B can be determinedbased on content of the original voice message, such as based on acontent analysis of the text performed by the communications managementagent 162′ using voice recognition, natural language engines and/orparsing engines. For example, an original inquiry command of “HaveHerman call me as soon as possible,” can be analyzed by thecommunications management agent 162′ and a standard inquiry message of“Please call <Sending User's Name> at <Sending User's Number>-Urgent”can be determined to be the best standard representation of the inquirycommand based on a combination of the original inquiry command,monitored behavior information, and the urgency indicators included inthe original inquiry command. In one or more embodiments, a list ofstandard inquiry messages is available to the communications managementagent 162′. The standard inquiry messages can be used by thecommunications management agent 162′ to provide efficient and consistentmessages of inquiry.

In one of more embodiments, the communications management agent 162′ candetermine an inquiry indicator to accompany the standard inquiry message550B. For example, the inquiry indicator can be a special ring tone fora mobile communication device 516 that indicates to the receiving user501 that the sending user 502 is making an inquiry. The inquiryindicator can be a tone, a graphical element on a graphical userinterface, a vibration, or other signature notification that can beuniquely adapted to identify the sending user 502 or to identify a typeof inquiry from the sending user 502.

In one or more embodiments, the inquiry indicator and the standardinquiry messages 550B server as “whisper” invitations for the receivinguser 501 to respond. For example, the sending user can initiate aninquiry command for “Herman to call me as soon as he can” that will bereceived and processed by the communications management agent 162′. Thecommunications management agent 162′ can select the appropriate standardinquiry message and can determine an importance rating of “urgent” basedon the content of the inquiry command and on behavioral informationassociated with the sending user 502. For example, the communicationsmanagement agent 162′ can determine that a text message of “Please call<Sending User's Name> at <Sending User's Number>-Urgent” will be sent toHerman's mobile phone 516. The communications management agent 162′ canthen determine that an inquiry indicator of a special series of beeps orof a special series of vibrations will accompany the message that hasbeen sent to Herman's mobile phone 516. This indicator can be known toHerman as identifying text messages from the sending user 502 and/or asidentifying messages of special importance.

In one or more embodiments, a representative message can be an enhancedversion of the recording which includes all of the content of the voicerecording and includes additional information generated by thecommunications management agent 162′, such as subject matter headings,links to content referenced in the voice recording, identificationinformation for individuals referenced in the voice recordings, and soforth. The additional information can be generated by the communicationsmanagement agent 162′ using various techniques, including analysis ofthe content of the voice recording (e.g., using voice recognition,natural language engines and/or parsing engines), analysis of othercommunications that are determined to be associated with the voicerecording, and/or a determination (e.g., by the communicationsmanagement agent 162′) of expectations of the user 501 as to informationthat should be included in the message. For instance, the communicationsmanagement agent 162′ can determine based on previous communicationsexchanged between the users 501, 502 via the communications agents 162,162′, that the user 501 desires messages to include email addresses forany individual identified in a message. This determination can be madeby the communications management agent 162′ based on a history ofmessage exchanges in which the communications management agent 162requested such information. It should be further understood that whilethe example describes use of a voice recording, the messages can beoriginated in various forms, including text, video and so forth.

In system 500, the original message 550A, a representative messagegenerated by the communications management agent 162′ and/or othercommunications can be exchanged between the communications managementagent 162′ and the communications management agent 162, as indicated byarrow 550B. In one or more embodiments, a portion of the communicationsexchange 550B between the communications management agents 162, 162′ canbe performed to obtain a revised version of the message and/or to obtaindata (indicated by arrow 575B) that is used by one or both of the agents162, 162′ for processing the dynamic message handling rules and/or forrevising or otherwise reformatting the message.

As indicated by arrows 575A, data can be provided to or otherwiseobtained by the communications management agents 162, 162′ forprocessing the dynamic message handling rules. In one or moreembodiments, all or a portion of the communications exchange 550B can beperformed automatically between the communications management agents162, 162′ without user intervention. The amount and type of dataexchanged between the communications management agents 162, 162′,including the amount and type of the monitored behavior information 525can vary. In one or more embodiments, no information, limitedinformation or all information from the monitored behavior information525 can be exchanged between the communications management agents 162,162′. The determination of the amount and type of the monitored behaviorinformation 525 can be based on a number of factors, as well asdifferent decision makers. For example, a user may designate informationwhich can and cannot be shared with other communications managementagents. In another embodiment, the sharing of the monitored behaviorinformation can be determined by one of the communications managementagents based on a prior history of sharing with another communicationsmanagement agent and/or a prior history by the other communicationsmanagement agent maintaining the confidentiality of the sharedinformation.

In one or more embodiments, the exchange of the monitored behaviorinformation 525 and/or 525′ can be performed with controls on thedistribution of the information, such as permitting use of the monitoredinformation by the two communications management agents 162 and 162′that have exchanged all or a portion of the information but prohibitingfurther distribution of the information to other communicationsmanagement agents. In one or more embodiments, the negotiation for theexchange of monitored information can be based on future or pastexchanges of such information. For instance, the communicationsmanagement agent 162 can agree to presently provide the monitoredbehavior information 525 of the user 501 to the communicationsmanagement agent 162′ if the communications management agent 162′ agreesto exchange monitored information in the future (in the event that theuser 501 seeks to send a message to the user 502′ in the future).

In system 500, the communications management agent 162 can receive themessage 550A or a representative message generated by the communicationsmanagement agent 162′ and can apply the dynamic message handling rulesto determine a process for delivery of the message to the user 501,including timing, message format, and/or recipient communication device.The dynamic message handling rules can be applied by the communicationsmanagement agent 162 utilizing the monitored behavior information 525,all or a portion of the monitored behavior information 525′ and/or otherfactors. In one or more embodiments, the communications management agent162 can analyze the content of the message and can utilize that analysis(e.g., a determination of a subject matter of the content) for applyingthe dynamic message handling rules, including in combination with themonitored behavior information. In one or more embodiments, thecommunications management agent 162 can determine or otherwise predictthe particular activity that the user 501 is currently engaged in basedon the monitored behavior information 525 and can determine whether theuser 501 would desire to receive a message 550C that pertains to thedetermined subject matter. The message 550C can be the message that wasreceived from the communications management agent 162′ or can be amessage representative of the received message, including a summarizedversion (e.g., based on the content analysis performed by agent 162) oran enhanced version that includes additional information that thecommunications management agent has determined the user 501 would desireto be included in the message. In one or more embodiments, thecommunications management agent 162 can determine a message format(e.g., text, voice, or video) and/or a recipient communication devicebased on the monitored behavior information 525, 525′ and/or the contentanalysis.

As an example, the communications management agent 162 can receive amessage from communications management agent 162′ which is in the formof a video conference message and that includes a subject headingentitled business proposal. The communications management agent 162 cananalyze the content of the message to determine that the messagepertains to an offer to retain a first entity to perform a landscapingcontract. The communications management agent 162 can access themonitored behavior information 525 which includes scheduling data from acalendar of user 501 that indicates that the user 501 is presently in ameeting and the subject heading for the meeting is landscape work. Thecommunications management agent 162 can access other data of themonitored behavior information, such as presence data of otherindividuals, content analysis of previous messages received by the user501 that are associated with the landscape contract and so forth, todetermine that the user 501 is presently meeting with a second entityregarding the landscaping contract. Based on this information, thecommunications management agent 162 can determine that the user 501would desire to receive the message that includes the offer from thefirst entity and would desire to receive it in a format that is subtle,such as a summary text message, in order to have the information in-handduring the discussions with the competitor second entity. In thisexample, the communications management agent 162 can determine detailsof the current activity of the user 501, reformat the message from avideo conference message to a text message that summarizes the offerfrom the first entity, and deliver the text message to the portabledevice 516 of the user 501. For instance, the communications managementagent 162 can determine that the user 501 desires only to see thedetails of the first entity's offer such as a text message reading:“$25,000 annual contract bid by the first entity.”

In one or more embodiments, importance ratings can be generated andassigned to messages by either or both of the communications managementagents 162, 162′. The agent importance ratings can be included withimportance ratings provided by the user 502 that originated the messageor the recipient user 502 that is forwarding the message to anotheruser. The use of importance ratings generated by the communicationsmanagement agents 162 and/or 162′ enables a credibility system to beimplemented so that agents and their users can have a betterunderstanding of the accuracy of the importance ratings.

In one or more embodiments, the communications management agent 162′ canreceive the message 550A and can perform a content analysis (e.g., usingvoice recognition, parsing engines and/or natural language engines) todetermine a first importance rating for the message. The determinationof the first importance ratings can be based on other informationincluding the monitored behavior information 525′ of the user 502.

As an example, the communications management agent 162′ can determinefrom the content analysis and the monitored behavior information 525′(e.g., scheduling data, presence data, prior message content, biometricdata and so forth) that the user 502 desires to receive a response tothe message which is an invitation to meet before the end of the day tofinalize the landscape contract described above with respect to theearlier example. For the user 502, it is important to receive theresponse before the end of the day because the user 502 is scheduled tobegin work on another landscaping bid the following day with anotherpotential client and which the user 502 will not be bidding for if theoffer to user 501 is agreed upon. The communications management agent162′ may place a high priority importance rating on message 550A andprovide it to the communications management agent 162. The particularscale and indicia of the importance rating can vary and can be anumerical scale (e.g., 1 to 10) or a verbal scale (e.g., low, medium,high, very high, read immediately).

Continuing with this example, the communications management agent 162can utilize the first importance rating in its application of thedynamic message handling rules in combination with other criteria,including the monitored behavior information 525, any monitored behaviorinformation 525′ that was received from the agent 162′, an analysis ofthe content of the message performed by the agent 162, and so forth.Based on the first importance rating, the monitored behavior information525, 525′, and/or the content analysis, the communications managementagent 162 can determine a time, format and/or recipient communicationdevice for delivery of message 550C to the user 501.

In one or more embodiments, the communications management agent 162 cangenerate a second importance rating for the received message or aderivative message thereof that is intended to be sent to another party.For example, the message may need to be forwarded to co-workers of theuser 501 to keep a record of the negotiation process but the urgency ofdelivery of the message is lower so the second importance rating may bedesignated as low.

As an example of a second importance rating for a derivative message andcontinuing with the landscaping contract example described above, thecommunications management agent 162 can receive the message from thecommunications management agent 162′ with an importance rating of a highpriority. The communications management agent 162′ may agree that themessage, as it pertains to delivery to the user 501 and based on othercriteria including the content analysis and the monitored information525 and/or 525′, is of high priority so that the message is processed bythe agent 162′ for delivery to the user 501 accordingly (e.g., a textmessage delivered immediately to the user 501 via the portable device516 with periodic follow-up reminders in the absence of a response fromthe user 501). The communications management agent 162′ may alsodetermine from the content analysis of the message and scheduling dataof the user 501 that the user was scheduled to buy milk at the storewhen leaving work that evening per the request of the family of the user501. The communications management agent 162 can determine that thefamily of the user 501 is a party related to the message and should benotified that the user 501 will be buying the milk at a later thanexpected time due to the potential meeting to finalize the contract. Thecommunications management agent 162 can further determine the secondimportance rating for the derivative message to be delivered to one ormore communications devices of the family of the user 501 (e.g., via afamily communications management agent). The second importance ratingcan be determined by the communications management agent 162 to be oflower priority because the user 501 will still have time to purchase themilk but at a later time so the derivative message provided by thecommunications management agent 162 can include a medium priorityrating.

In one or more embodiments, the communications management agents 162,162′ can maintain and adjust virtual task lists 163 for the users 501,502, respectively. Adjustment of the virtual task lists can be based ona number of factors including the monitored behavior information 525,525′, content analysis of incoming messages, user interactions with thecommunications management agents, user preferences and so forth. Thevirtual task lists 163 can also be used by the communications managementagents 162, 162′ for delegating or otherwise requesting other users toperform tasks. In one or more embodiments, interaction data associatedwith the users that pertains to a prior history of tasks performed foreach other, the timeliness of the completion of the tasks, the qualityof performance of the task and so forth may be utilized to manage thevirtual task list 163 and/or to provide requests to other users forperformance of a task.

As an example, the communications management agents 162, 162′ canutilize monitored behavior 525 and/or 525′ to generate or otherwisedetermine task requests. Scheduling data and/or presence data of themonitored behavior 525, 525′ can facilitate generating task requests,such as allowing communications management agent 162 to know that user502 is presently located within a short distance of a grocery store andthat scheduling data of the calendar of user 502 indicates that user 502is not scheduled for anything this evening. In this example, thecommunications management agent 162 can determine from monitoredbehavior 525 (e.g., scheduling data and content analysis of messagesrelated to work that needs to be performed by user 501 that evening)that it would be difficult for the user 501 to pick up milk on the wayhome, which is a task on virtual task list 163, because the user 501will be leaving work very late. The communications management agent 162can suggest to the user 501 that a task request be sent to user 502 viacommunications management agent 162′ due in part to interaction datathat indicates that the user 501 has recently performed several tasks onbehalf of the user 502. In this example, upon approval of the taskrequest by the user 501, the communications management agent 162 canforward the task request to the communications management agent 162′.Upon completion of the task, which can be monitored by thecommunications management agent 162, the virtual task list 163 can beadjusted to remove the task of purchasing milk.

FIG. 6 depicts an illustrative embodiment of a system 600 for managingthe delivery of incoming messages utilizing an importance rating system.System 600 can be overlaid or operably coupled to communication systems100, 200 and/or 500 as another representative embodiment ofcommunication systems 100, 200 and/or 500.

In this exemplary embodiment, communications management agents 162, 162′can be implemented on the servers 530, 530′ within the network 518.Importance ratings can be generated as described with respect to system500 of FIG. 5, including by the communications management agents 162,162′ based on content analysis, monitored behavior information, and soforth.

Communications exchanges 550 can occur between the communicationsmanagement agents 162, 162′, including transmitting messages,transmitting task requests, transmitting queries for furtherinformation, transmitting importance ratings, and so forth. Dataexchange 575 including all or a portion of monitored behaviorinformation can occur between the communications management agents 162,162′, which is used by one or both of the agents 162, 162′ forprocessing the dynamic message handling rules and/or for revising orotherwise reformatting the message.

In one or more embodiments, rating feedback information 650, 650′ can bemaintained by the communications management agents 162, 162′. The ratingfeedback information 650, 650′ can be generated based on determinations,made by communications management agents and/or users, of the accuracyof importance ratings generated by other communications managementagents. The rating feedback information can then be utilized inassessing the accuracy of a particular importance rating and includingthe accuracy determination as part of the application of the dynamicmessage handling rules to process delivery of the message, such as atime, format and recipient communication device for delivery of themessage.

As an example, communications management agent 162 can receive a messagefrom communications management agent 162′ that includes an importancerating of a high priority. A content analysis of the message performedby the communications management agent 162 can indicate that the subjectmatter of the message is attending a baseball game that is scheduledmore than eight months away. The rating feedback information 650 caninclude one or more first accuracy determinations made by thecommunications management agent 162 for one or more past importanceratings generated by the communications management agent 162′ formessages received by the agent 162 that may or may not be related to thepresent message. The rating feedback information 650 can include one ormore second accuracy determinations made by other communicationsmanagement agents for one or more past importance ratings generated bythe communications management agent 162′ for messages received by theother communications management agents that may or may not be related tothe present message. The communications management agent can analyze thefirst and/or second accuracy determinations to determine or otherwisepredict the accuracy of the presently received importance rating for thepresently received message. In one or more embodiments, the analysis ofthe first and/or second accuracy determinations can include correlatingaccuracy determinations with subject matter of particular messages todetect patterns, such as detecting a tendency for the communicationsmanagement agent 162′ to generate a high importance rating for messagesrelated to attending social events. In this example, the communicationsmanagement agent 162 can deem the accuracy of the “high priority”importance rating to be of poor accuracy based on the analysis describedabove, which may be performed in combination with other techniques,including the content analysis, review of monitored behavior of the usersending the message and so forth. The poor accuracy determination can bebased on input from the recipient user, which may be used in addition toor in place of the accuracy determination made by the communicationsmanagement agent 162.

The poor accuracy determination can be added to the rating feedbackinformation 650 for future accuracy determinations associated withfuture messages and importance ratings received from the communicationsmanagement agent 162′. In one or more embodiments, the poor accuracydetermination by the communications management agent 162 can beforwarded to other communications management agents (e.g., correspondingto friends, family, co-workers, and so forth) for storage in theircorresponding rating feedback information so that the othercommunications management agents can utilize the poor accuracydetermination in their own accuracy determinations for importanceratings for future messages received from the communications managementagent 162′.

In one or more embodiments, disputes over accuracy determinations can beresolved utilizing a ratings arbitrator 635 implemented using computerinstructions executed by a server 630. The ratings arbitrator 635 canreceive (as indicated by dataflow 675) pertinent accuracy informationfrom the communications management agents 162, 162′ that are involved inthe dispute over the accuracy of the importance rating. The pertinentaccuracy information can include the importance rating, rating feedbackinformation, content analysis, monitored behavior of either or both ofthe users associated with communications management agents 162, 162′,and so forth. In one or more embodiments, explanations as to why theimportance rating is or is not accurate can be received from thecommunications management agents 162, 162′ (e.g., generated by the usersand/or generated by the agents 162, 162′) and can be analyzed by theratings arbitrator 635 (e.g., using parsing and/or natural languageengines). The ratings arbitrator 635 can determine whether or not theimportance rating was accurate and can issue a notice to thecommunications management agents 162, 162′, as well as othercommunications management agents that have received an indication thatthe agent 162′ issued an inaccurate importance rating. The notice caninclude information, such as a determination of the accuracy and/or amore accurate importance rating that should have been used.

Continuing with the example described above for the “high priority”importance rating for the message to attend a baseball game that wasdeemed as of poor accuracy, the ratings arbitrator 635 may receivepertinent accuracy information from the communications management agent162′ indicating that tickets for the baseball game are almost sold out.This information may not have been available to the communicationsmanagement agent 162 when it determined that the “high priority”importance rating was of poor accuracy. The ratings arbitrator 635 maydetermine from this pertinent accuracy information that the importancerating assigned to the message by the communications management agent162′ was warranted because the tickets would be sold out and therecipient user associated with the communications management agent had astrong desire to attend the baseball game.

In one or more embodiments, the ratings arbitrator can be anothercommunications management agent(s) that is requested to act a neutralparty to determine the accuracy of the importance rating.

FIG. 7 depicts an illustrative method 700 that operates in portions ofthe devices, systems and/or methods of FIGS. 1-6. Method 700 can beginat 702 in which a message is received or otherwise obtained by acommunications management agent associated with the sender of themessage. At 704, monitored behavior information can be obtained orotherwise accessed. The monitored behavior information can be associatedwith the sender of the message and/or the intended recipient of themessage. At 706, the content of the message can be analyzed, such asthrough use of parsing engines, natural language engines, rhetoricallibraries and/or other components and techniques to automaticallyanalyze a message to determine a subject matter and details of themessage.

At 708, an importance rating for the message can be determined based onthe monitored behavior information and the content analysis. At 710, themessage and the importance rating can be provided to anothercommunications management agent that is associated with the intendedrecipient of the message. The message provided to the othercommunications management agent can be in the same format as wasoriginated by the user (e.g., a text message) or can be in a convertedformat (e.g., a digital voice message that summarizes the originalmessage). The reformatting can be performed by the communicationsmanagement agent based on the monitored behavior information and/or thecontent analysis. While one or more of the exemplary embodimentsdescribe agent-to-agent communications as a means for deliveringuser-to-user communications, the exemplary embodiments can also includeuse of a single communications management agent that delivers messagesbetween users, such as where a recipient user does not have acommunications management agent.

FIG. 8 depicts an illustrative method 800 that operates in portions ofthe devices, systems and/or methods of FIGS. 1-7. Method 800 can beginat 802 in which a message and an importance rating are received fromanother communications management agent. At 804, the monitored behaviorinformation can be obtained or otherwise accessed. The monitoredbehavior information can be associated with the sender of the messageand/or the intended recipient of the message. At 806, the content of themessage can be analyzed, such as through use of parsing engines, naturallanguage engines, rhetorical libraries and/or other components andtechniques to automatically analyze a message to determine a subjectmatter and details of the message.

At 808, rating feedback information that is associated with thecommunications management agent that generated the importance rating canbe obtained or otherwise accessed. At 810, an accuracy of the importancerating can be determined based on the rating feedback information, thecontent analysis and/or the obtained monitored behavior information.

At 812, the message can be processed according to the dynamic messagehandling rules for delivery to the intended recipient which is the userassociated with the communications management agent performing method800 in whole or in part. The rules can include utilizing the monitoredbehavior information, the content analysis and/or the importance ratingto determine a time, format and recipient communication device fordelivery of the message.

FIG. 9 depicts an illustrative method 900 that operates in portions ofthe devices, systems and/or methods of FIGS. 1-8. Method 900 can beginat 902 in which a message is received or otherwise obtained by acommunications management agent associated with the recipient of themessage. At 904, monitored behavior information can be obtained orotherwise accessed. The monitored behavior information can be associatedwith the sender of the message and/or the intended recipient of themessage. At 906, the content of the message can be analyzed, such asthrough use of parsing engines, natural language engines, rhetoricallibraries and/or other components and techniques to automaticallyanalyze a message to determine a subject matter and details of themessage.

At 908, a virtual task list of the recipient of the message can beadjusted based on the content of the message that indicates the taskthat needs to be performed. The indication of the ask can be a directrequest by the sender for performance of the task or can be the resultof a synthesis of the message that results in a determination that thetask needs to be completed based on information described in themessage. The adjustment of the virtual task list can be performed basedon other factors, including the monitored behavior information (e.g.,scheduling data, presence data, relationship between task requestor andrecipient, and so forth), other tasks on the virtual task list, and soforth

At 910, monitored behavior information can be obtained or otherwiseaccessed where the information is associated with other users that canpotentially perform the task associated with the message. At 912, a taskmessage or request can be provided to a select one of the other usersbased on the obtained monitored behavior information. For example, themonitored behavior information including presence data and schedulingdata may indicate that the user's brother is in the vicinity of agrocery store and the task message may be provided to a communicationsmanagement agent of the user's brother to purchase milk.

FIG. 10 depicts an illustrative method 1000 that operates in portions ofthe devices, systems and/or methods of FIGS. 1-9. Method 1000 can beginat 1004 in which an inquiry command originated by a first communicationdevice can be received by a communications management agent associatedwith the first communication device. The inquiry command can beoriginated at the first communication device and can be directed toobtaining a response from a second user. At step 1008, monitoredbehavior information can be obtained or otherwise accessed. Themonitored behavior information can be associated with the second userfrom a communications management agent that is associated with thesecond user. The monitored behavior information can be associated withthe intended recipient of the message. At step 1012, the content of thereceived inquiry command can be analyzed to determine a standard inquirymessage and an urgency level. The content can be analyzed, for example,through use of parsing engines, natural language engines, rhetoricallibraries and/or other components and techniques to automaticallyanalyze a message to determine a subject matter and details of themessage.

At step 1016, an importance rating of the inquiry command can bedetermined according to the urgency level and the obtained behaviorinformation. At step 1020, an inquiry indicator associated with thefirst communication device can be determined. The inquiry indicator canaccompany the receipt of the standard inquiry message at the secondcommunication device. At 1024, the standard inquiry message and theimportance rating can be provided to the communications management agentof the second user. The communications management agent for the seconduser can determine a time and message format for receipt of the inquirymessage by a second communication device of the second user based on theimportance rating. In one or more embodiments, the standard inquirymessage and the importance rating can be broadcast to a group ofcommunication devices. The communication devices can be associated withmultiple users and/or multiple communications management agents and/orno communications management agents.

At step 1028, a response to the standard inquiry message can be receivedfrom the communications management agent of the second user. At 1032, arating feedback can be received based on a determination of an accuracyof the importance rating with the standard inquiry message. The ratingfeedback can be utilized by at least some of a group of servers inanalyzing an accuracy of a second importance rating for a secondstandard inquiry message originating from the first user.

Upon reviewing the aforementioned embodiments, it would be evident to anartisan with ordinary skill in the art that said embodiments can bemodified, reduced, or enhanced without departing from the scope andspirit of the claims described below. In one or more embodiments, a usercan explicitly create an audio file to play as the inquiry indicatorringtone at the receiving communication device when the standard inquirymessage originated by the user is received at the receivingcommunication device. In one or more embodiments, supplemental text canbe displayed along with an audio inquiry indicator. In one or moreembodiments, a caller identity (ID) message can be displayed at thereceiving communication device as the inquiry indicator or inconjunction with another indicator such as an audio tone. In one or moreembodiments, a set of graphical representations can be displayed on thereceiving communication device to highlight the importance ratingassociated with the inquiry.

In one or more embodiments, advertising can be included with thestandard inquiry message. The advertising can be correlated to themonitored behavior associated with the receiving user. For example, ifpresence information for the receiving user indicates that the he or sheis at a baseball game, then the standard inquiry message can beaccompanied by an advertisement for a product sold at the concessionstand or for a sponsor associated with the ballpark or the team.

In one or more embodiments, an accuracy dispute notice associated with arating feedback can be provided to a ratings accuracy server to initiatea second accuracy determination by the ratings accuracy server for animportance rating of a first message from a first communicationsmanagement agent, where the second accuracy determination is accessibleby at least some of a group of servers in analyzing the accuracy of thesecond importance rating for a second message provided by the secondcommunications management agent.

In one or more embodiments, a determination of the accuracy of animportance rating generated by a first communications management agentassociated with a first user can be based in whole or in part on userfeedback originated at a second communication device of a second userthat is the recipient of the message that includes the importancerating.

In one or more embodiments, content of a message can be analyzed togenerate message information representative of the message and one ormore related parties can be determined based on the analysis of thecontent. In this example, a second importance rating can be determinedfor the message. The second message information and the secondimportance rating can be provided to another communications managementagent associated with the one or more related parties for determining atime and/or a message format for delivery of the second messageinformation to a communication device(s) of the one or more relatedparties.

In one or more embodiments, a communications management agent canconsider the successful delivery of a past message to a communicationdevice of an intended recipient within a threshold time period, as afactor in applying the dynamic message handling rules (e.g., determininga time, format and/or device for delivery of the message).

In one or more embodiments, voice recognition can be utilized by asender's communications management agent and/or a recipient'scommunications management agent in adjusting a format for delivery of amessage.

In one or more embodiments, the communications management agents cangenerate avatars for the interaction with the corresponding user and/orinteraction with other users. For example, the avatar can be presentedat a communication device of a user to obtain verification of monitoredbehavior, authorization for assignment of a virtual task, preference fordelivery of a message, and so forth. The form of the avatar can vary andcan be based on the monitored behavior information, such as providing ahumorous avatar when a determination is made that the user would be morereceptive to such as avatar. In one or more embodiments, the avatar candevelop over time as the user changes, where the changes in the user aredetermined by the communications management agent based on the monitoredbehavior information.

FIG. 11 depicts an exemplary diagrammatic representation of a machine orcontroller circuit in the form of a computer system 1100 within which aset of instructions, when executed, may cause the machine to perform anyone or more of the methods discussed above. One or more instances of themachine can operate, for example, as the server 130, 530, the mediaprocessor 106, 506, the media device 108, 508, the portablecommunication devices 116, 516, or combinations thereof as describedabove. In some embodiments, the machine may be connected (e.g., using anetwork) to other machines. In a networked deployment, the machine mayoperate in the capacity of a server or a client user machine inserver-client user network environment, or as a peer machine in apeer-to-peer (or distributed) network environment.

The machine may comprise a server computer, a client user computer, apersonal computer (PC), a tablet PC, a smart phone, a laptop computer, adesktop computer, a control system, a network router, switch or bridge,or any machine capable of executing a set of instructions (sequential orotherwise) that specify actions to be taken by that machine. It will beunderstood that a communication device of the present disclosureincludes broadly any electronic device that provides voice, video ordata communication. Further, while a single machine is illustrated, theterm “machine” shall also be taken to include any collection of machinesthat individually or jointly execute a set (or multiple sets) ofinstructions to perform any one or more of the methods discussed herein.

The computer system 1100 may include a processor 1102 (e.g., a centralprocessing unit (CPU), a graphics processing unit (GPU, or both), a mainmemory 1104 and a static memory 1106, which communicate with each othervia a bus 1108. The computer system 1100 may further include a videodisplay unit 1110 (e.g., a liquid crystal display (LCD), a flat panel,or a solid state display. The computer system 1100 may include an inputdevice 1112 (e.g., a keyboard), a cursor control device 1114 (e.g., amouse), a disk drive unit 1116, a signal generation device 1118 (e.g., aspeaker or remote control) and a network interface device 1120.

The disk drive unit 1116 may include a tangible computer-readablestorage medium 1122 on which is stored one or more sets of instructions(e.g., software 1124) embodying any one or more of the methods orfunctions described herein, including those methods illustrated above.The instructions 1124 may also reside, completely or at least partially,within the main memory 1104, the static memory 1106, and/or within theprocessor 1102 during execution thereof by the computer system 1100. Themain memory 1104 and the processor 1102 also may constitute tangiblecomputer-readable storage media.

Dedicated hardware implementations including, but not limited to,application specific integrated circuits, programmable logic arrays andother hardware devices can likewise be constructed to implement themethods described herein. Applications that may include the apparatusand systems of various embodiments broadly include a variety ofelectronic and computer systems. Some embodiments implement functions intwo or more specific interconnected hardware modules or devices withrelated control and data signals communicated between and through themodules, or as portions of an application-specific integrated circuit.Thus, the example system is applicable to software, firmware, andhardware implementations.

In accordance with various embodiments of the present disclosure, themethods described herein are intended for operation as software programsrunning on a computer processor. Furthermore, software implementationscan include, but not limited to, distributed processing orcomponent/object distributed processing, parallel processing, or virtualmachine processing can also be constructed to implement the methodsdescribed herein.

While the tangible computer-readable storage medium 1122 is shown in anexample embodiment to be a single medium, the term “tangiblecomputer-readable storage medium” should be taken to include a singlemedium or multiple media (e.g., a centralized or distributed database,and/or associated caches and servers) that store the one or more sets ofinstructions. The term “tangible computer-readable storage medium” shallalso be taken to include any non-transitory medium that is capable ofstoring or encoding a set of instructions for execution by the machineand that cause the machine to perform any one or more of the methods ofthe present disclosure.

The term “tangible computer-readable storage medium” shall accordinglybe taken to include, but not be limited to: solid-state memories such asa memory card or other package that houses one or more read-only(non-volatile) memories, random access memories, or other re-writable(volatile) memories, a magneto-optical or optical medium such as a diskor tape, or other tangible media which can be used to store information.Accordingly, the disclosure is considered to include any one or more ofa tangible computer-readable storage medium, as listed herein andincluding art-recognized equivalents and successor media, in which thesoftware implementations herein are stored.

Although the present specification describes components and functionsimplemented in the embodiments with reference to particular standardsand protocols, the disclosure is not limited to such standards andprotocols. Each of the standards for Internet and other packet switchednetwork transmission (e.g., TCP/IP, UDP/IP, HTML, HTTP) representexamples of the state of the art. Such standards are from time-to-timesuperseded by faster or more efficient equivalents having essentiallythe same functions. Wireless standards for device detection (e.g.,RFID), short-range communications (e.g., Bluetooth, WiFi, Zigbee), andlong-range communications (e.g., WiMAX, GSM, CDMA) are contemplated foruse by computer system 1100.

The illustrations of embodiments described herein are intended toprovide a general understanding of the structure of various embodiments,and they are not intended to serve as a complete description of all theelements and features of apparatus and systems that might make use ofthe structures described herein. Many other embodiments will be apparentto those of skill in the art upon reviewing the above description. Otherembodiments may be utilized and derived therefrom, such that structuraland logical substitutions and changes may be made without departing fromthe scope of this disclosure. Figures are also merely representationaland may not be drawn to scale. Certain proportions thereof may beexaggerated, while others may be minimized. Accordingly, thespecification and drawings are to be regarded in an illustrative ratherthan a restrictive sense.

Although specific embodiments have been illustrated and describedherein, it should be appreciated that any arrangement calculated toachieve the same purpose may be substituted for the specific embodimentsshown. This disclosure is intended to cover any and all adaptations orvariations of various embodiments. Combinations of the aboveembodiments, and other embodiments not specifically described herein,will be apparent to those of skill in the art upon reviewing the abovedescription.

The Abstract of the Disclosure is provided with the understanding thatit will not be used to interpret or limit the scope or meaning of theclaims. In addition, in the foregoing Detailed Description, it can beseen that various features are grouped together in a single embodimentfor the purpose of streamlining the disclosure. This method ofdisclosure is not to be interpreted as reflecting an intention that theclaimed embodiments require more features than are expressly recited ineach claim. Rather, as the following claims reflect, inventive subjectmatter lies in less than all features of a single disclosed embodiment.Thus the following claims are hereby incorporated into the DetailedDescription, with each claim standing on its own as a separately claimedsubject matter.

What is claimed is:
 1. A server, comprising: a memory to storeinstructions; and a controller circuit coupled to the memory, whereinthe controller circuit, responsive to executing the instructions,performs operations comprising: receiving an inquiry command from afirst communication device used by a first user, wherein the inquirycommand originates at the first communication device and is directed toobtaining a response from a second user; obtaining first behaviorinformation associated with the second user according to acommunications management agent server that is associated with thesecond user, wherein the first behavior information comprises biometricdata; analyzing content of the inquiry command to determine a standardinquiry message and an urgency level; monitoring a calendar of thesecond user to determine time and location commitments of the seconduser; determining an importance rating for the standard inquiry messageby applying message handling rules according to a combination of theurgency level, the first behavior information, and the time and locationcommitments; obtaining second behavior information associated with thefirst user via the first communication device from a biometric sensormonitoring the first user, wherein the importance rating is furtherdetermined by applying the message handling rules according to thesecond behavior information; providing the standard inquiry message andthe importance rating to the communications management agent serverassociated with the second user that determines a time and messageformat for receipt of the standard inquiry message by a secondcommunication device used by the second user based on the importancerating; receiving a response to the standard inquiry message from thecommunications management agent server associated with the second user;broadcasting the standard inquiry message and the importance rating to aplurality of communication devices; and receiving a plurality ofresponses from the plurality of communication devices.
 2. The server ofclaim 1, wherein the first behavior information further comprisesscheduling data, presence data, prior message content, or a combinationthereof.
 3. The server of claim 1, wherein the controller performsoperations further comprising determining an inquiry indicatorassociated with the first communications device.
 4. The server of claim3, wherein the inquiry indicator accompanies the receipt of the standardinquiry message at the second communication device.
 5. The server ofclaim 1, wherein the controller circuit performs further operationscomprising receiving a rating feedback based on a determination of anaccuracy of the importance rating with the standard inquiry message,wherein the rating feedback is utilized for analyzing an accuracy of asecond importance rating for a second standard inquiry message providedby the controller circuit.
 6. A server device, comprising: a memory tostore instructions; and a processor coupled to the memory, wherein theprocessor, responsive to executing the instructions, performs operationscomprising: enabling a first communications management agent serverassociated with a first user; enabling a second communicationsmanagement agent server associated with a second user; receiving aninquiry command from a first communication device used by the firstuser, wherein the inquiry command originates at the first communicationdevice and is directed to obtaining a response from the second user;obtaining first behavior information associated with the first useraccording to the first communication agent server; determining anurgency level according to content of the inquiry command and the firstbehavior information; obtaining second behavior information associatedwith the second user according to the second communication agent server,wherein the obtaining comprises monitoring a calendar of the seconduser, and wherein the second behavior information comprises presencedata for the second user and time and location commitments of the seconduser; determining an importance rating of the inquiry command byapplying handling rules according to the urgency level and the secondbehavior information; providing the inquiry command and the importancerating to the second communications management agent server fordetermining a time and message format for receipt of the inquiry commandby a second communication device used by the second user based on theimportance rating; broadcasting the inquiry command and the importancerating to a plurality of communication devices; and receiving aplurality of responses from the plurality of communication devices. 7.The server device of claim 6, wherein the inquiry command is initiatedby the first user as a physical contact with a user interface device. 8.The server device of claim 6, wherein the first behavior informationcomprises presence data, scheduling data, interaction data, or acombination thereof.
 9. The server device of claim 6, further performingoperations comprising: determining an inquiry indicator associated withthe first communication device, wherein the inquiry indicatoraccompanies the receipt of the inquiry command at the secondcommunication device.
 10. The server device of claim 6, furtherperforming operations comprising receiving a rating feedback based on adetermination of an accuracy of the importance rating with the inquirycommand.
 11. The server device of claim 6, further performing operationscomprising: broadcasting the inquiry command and the importance ratingto a plurality of communication devices; and receiving a plurality ofresponses from the plurality of communication devices.
 12. The serverdevice of claim 6, further performing operations comprising providingthe inquiry command and the importance rating by posting on a socialnetwork website.
 13. A non-transitory computer-readable storage mediumcomprising instructions which, when executed by a processor, cause theprocessor to perform operations comprising: obtaining first behaviorinformation associated with a first user of a first communicationdevice, wherein the first behavior information comprises schedulingdata; obtaining second behavior information associated with the firstuser via the first communication device from a biometric sensormonitoring the first user; determining an inquiry message from aninquiry command that originates at the first communication device,wherein the inquiry message is associated with an importance ratingbased on an urgency of the inquiry command and on the first behaviorinformation and the second behavior information; monitoring a calendarof a second user of a second communication device to determine time andlocation commitments of the second user; and delivering the inquirymessage and the importance rating to a communications management agentserver associated with the second communication device, wherein thedelivering is performed in accordance with message handling rulesapplied to the time and location commitments of the second user, whereinthe importance rating is further determined by applying the messagehandling rules according to the second behavior information;broadcasting the standard inquiry message and the importance rating to aplurality of communication devices; and receiving a plurality ofresponses from the plurality of communication devices.
 14. Thenon-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 13, wherein theinquiry command is initiated by the first user as a selection at agraphical user interface.
 15. The non-transitory computer-readablestorage medium of claim 13, comprising instructions that cause theprocessor to further perform operations comprising obtaining behaviorinformation associated with the second user from a second biometricsensor monitoring the second user.
 16. The non-transitorycomputer-readable storage medium of claim 13, comprising instructionswhich, when executed by the processor, cause the processor to performoperations comprising receiving a response to the inquiry message fromthe communications management agent server associated with the seconduser.
 17. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim13, comprising instructions which, when executed by the processor,causes the processor to perform operations comprising: obtainingbehavior information associated with the second user from a secondbiometric sensor monitoring the second user; and analyzing content ofthe inquiry command to determine the inquiry message and the urgencyaccording to the behavior information associated with the second user.18. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 15,comprising instructions which, when executed by the processor, causesthe processor to perform operations comprising receiving a ratingfeedback based on a determination of an accuracy of the importancerating with the inquiry message.